January 18, 2007
Pre-Season 2007 College Football Rankings Roundup
Editor’s Note: Click here for an updated version of the 2007 college football pre-season rankings.
As expected, many 2007 pre-season rankings have us ranked highly. Not a surprise, given that 17 of the 20 returning starters are seniors and our toughest games are at home, except at SC. The Austin American Statesman, that bastion of sports guruness, has us ranked higher than anyone at #4. No explanation either. What is also a surprise is that there are rankings without us on them. Even a mediocre coach like Dorrell can win 9 games, which should put us in the top 25. Still no respect.
For the most part, however, the pollsters are picking UCLA to finish near tops in the country. That has the effect of putting Karl Dorrell firmly on the hot seat. If he falters all criticism will fall on him. And if he keeps the OC position for himself as has been reported, he will have no one to scapegoat. No Excuses next year … none. If Karl Dorrell cannot with the Pac-10 championship with the situation we have next year, how can anyone think he ever will??
Here is the list of pre-season rankings (if you’ve seen one we missed please let us know):
- ESPN.com #20
- Sports Illustrated #24
- Rivals.com unranked
- College Football News (Scout.com) #9
- CBS Sportsline unranked
- Austin American Statesman #4
- Sporting News unranked (only have top 11)
Here are some of the reasons for the rankings they state:
Sports Illustrated
Who’s back: RB Chris Markey, DE Bruce Davis, LB Christian Taylor.
Who’s not: DE Justin Hickman, K Justin Medlock.
Skinny: The Bruins showed their potential in a Dec. 2 upset of No. 2 USC. Now, 20 starters return. It’s time for Karl Dorell’s team to take it to the next level.College Football News
Who will the quarterback be? The Pat Cowan/Ben Olson debate will be the big one this off-season. That’s the only offensive issue with ten starters returning. The defense loses Justin Hickman, but All-America end Bruce Davis comes back along with nine other starters. The team’s biggest loss is PK Justin Medlock.ESPN.com
Why: The Bruins won their last three regular-season games, including a 13-9 upset of USC, before losing to Florida State 44-27 in the Emerald Bowl. UCLA could start 10 seniors on defense next season, and coordinator DeWayne Walker proved to be a great tactician in the upset of the Trojans. Likewise, the Bruins should lose only one starter on offense — center Robert Chai — and two experienced quarterbacks, Patrick Cowan and Ben Olson, will battle for the starting job.
Other Websites: Nfl Picks free for all addictsports members by simply signing up for their killer newsletter. College stuff too.
2 Comments on Pre-Season 2007 College Football Rankings Roundup
June 20, 2007
Michael Mulgrew @ 4:49 pm:
It sems like UCLA’s coach is making progress. To refer to this guy as mediocre is just insane. It takes time to build a program and the win versus USC, which Michigan could not do, was impressive. Beamer at Virginia Tech did not start off so great and now there are plenty of Hokie fans who should be very happy they were not listened to. If he struggles, sure he should be on the hot seat. However, he has made progress.
DumpDorrell @ 6:12 pm:
Michael .. we allowed your comment because DD regulars will get a kick out of it. And, it proves our point. When programs like Virginia Tech are compared to UCLA something is wrong. When non-Bruins call us “insane” when we think 29-21 is mediocre something is clearly wrong. When non-Bruins tell us that Dorrell has “made progress” something is terribly wrong. Just so you know … there hasn’t been a worse starting 3 nor 4 year period in the HISTORY of a UCLA football since WW2 than the Dorrell era. Progress indeed.